haha
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
The various objections that come from forum members are mostly irrational, based on a fallacy that if a counterparty makes a profit on trading with you, you must be losing. Another fallacy is framing the relevant entity as the portfolio, rather than lifetime consumption and security. So once the annuities have been purchased, we can no longer gaze so fondly on our total assets and think what very good, virtuous people we have been. A big loss for some of us, including me.
I've been here over 7 years, and I have never seen it dawn on people that these two assumptions (and others) can lead to biased and faulty thinking.
Clearly more competition will likely push down margins- but under current real interest rates there is no way an individual can mimic what a COLA lifetime SPIA can offer him, even under current competitive conditions. And what is being offered is a very valuable thing, as any government worker can attest. A check arriving every month, that will stay current with the cost of living as defined by CPI-U, no matter what happens in markets of the economy. Compare that to a computer program that will attempt to tell us how to safely draw down our portfolios to try to approximate this same result
If any one thinks that his equity allocation and SWR can do this as well or better, he should look at pages 7 and 8 of Worry Free Investing by Zvi Bodie, professor of finance at BU School of Management.
A member can make documented observations that are historical fact, and even though they give clear counter examples of the consensus "principles" the consensus of opinion will not be moved one inch.
If it is counter to the received consensus, only one's direct personal experience is given any validity, and usually by that person only. Even the sobering effect of personal bruising typically doesn't last long beyond the crisis.
During the 08-09 downturn some people disappeared from the boards, and others who are still here came very close to abandoning their committment to their allocation. At the present time we can look back and say, "I was smart and brave that I stayed the course". But if we were in Japan, we would look back and say, "Oh, I was stupid and foolhardy, I should have got out and stayed out!"
So Rescueme, I would save my breath. Not going to be much questioning of beliefs happening.
Ha
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